It looks like I missed quite a row yesterday. Ho hum...
But it's precisely the very thing I was talking about at the time of the demonstrations. Although I believe the students have a case, and the tuition fees issue is something worth fighting, the way they went about it was tactically a complete and utter mess.
What happened at those demonstrations played completely into the hands of the coalition government and gave Cameron all the ammunition he needed to tell Middle England that the Government was not going to be blackmailed by violent hooligans.
I agree totally that it was only a small proportion of the overall number of demonstrators that took part, but it was the proportion that Sky News (owned by News International, who also own The Sun, by small coincidence), the BBC and all the other news agencies beamed into the living rooms of Middle England as Tory voters were coming home from work, having spent their day earning a living and paying taxes.
Jacquesmetat's (JMT) response was entirely predictable, and I am of the firm opinion that he is not the only one of his age, social group and earnings bracket (collectively known as "Middle England" ) who feels the same.
I checked out JMT's profile and have seen some of his other posts. I see a man who has served in the Armed Forces, is a middle aged family man, who lives in a comfortable, well off suburb of a city that is overwhelmingly populated by military personell / workers. Heck..... I even lived in Gosport when I was a student at Portsmouth University..!!! I had student digs in that very town and I can tell you all that a more hard line, right wing, Thatcher-loving constituency probably doesn't exist anywere else in the country.
Hey, get this.... Go into Gosport public library and you will see the photos of Margaret Thatcher's visit to the town in the 1990's. The crowds lined the streets, cheering and waving flags... they still revere her today.
This is the sort of Middle England that the students are upsetting and when the pictures of violence on the streets of London become the sharp focus of the news, the message of the demonstration is lost.
The NUS allowed this to happen. They didn't take any steps whatsoever to prevent anarchists from infiltrating the demo, they did next door to nothing to keep the marchers on their route. They were too interested in getting as many numbers onto the streets as possible for a big, spectacular show of strength and, worse than that, the hard left wing of the Union went on BBC Radio before the first demo positively exhorting anyone.... anybody... to come along and "Smash the Tory Government".
After the first demo, hard liners were back on Radio 5 Live gleefully exclaiming "Direct Action is a right, and if you think yesterday was a show of force, you aint seen nothing yet".
I despair..!! What sort of message does that send out to the JMT's of this world..?? You tell me..
The damage that these things do to the Student cause is massive and yet....... I then see yesterday's discussion (if you can call it that) and you are all calling the bloke stupid..!! As if that is going to persuade him to change his mind..!!
Do any of you think that he is going to tell his mates at the golf club that he was wrong about the students, how it is all a set up by The Sun, and well, I suppose we should let the tiny minority let off steam, after all, their cause is just... Do you really think that is going to get across to the social group that has the most influence with the Government..? Do you really..?
Middle England is the backbone of the Conservative Party. When "Angry of Hampshire" fizzes his outraged emails, or letters or tweets to Tory HQ, the government takes notice of places like Gosport.
Do you think for one moment that the government is going to listen to the opinions of moderates in Scotland..? There are no Tory votes in Scotland, so they don't listen to JMO (not picking on you, my friend, just making an example for discussion's sake) or others who support the students. They listen to the outraged howls of their supporters and they say "No, we can't give in to the Students. Tuition fees stay". The cause is then lost.
If the student protests are to continue (and I hope they do, because their cause is just), the NUS have to get a grip. The students have to police themselves better. No wearing hoodies and face masks.... the cameras zoom right in on that.... they have to winkle out the anarchists, agitators and agents provocateur and hand them over to the nearest copper. Doing so would send a message to the troublemakers that they are not welcome and that the crowd is no hiding place for them.
The NUS have to control numbers, ensure the demonstration proceeds along the planned route and co-operate with the police in stopping breakaway groups from causing mayhem. The NUS has to sort out its own hard liners who want to turn a legitimate cause into Scargill-esque insurrection.
Oh, and as for the Sun article at the link.... that's just a piece of typical Sun mischief making. They do that all the time. That should just be ignored, but again, it isn't aimed at the thinking, liberal minded... it is deliberately targeted at Middle England and the lowbrow.... And it works.